Some flea market fun ... :)

I think it has been a super long time since I posted about my jaunts to quaint places ... we have just one such place in Gurgaon ... :) ... and my co-sister often beats me to being updated on the latest finds there ... one day soon ... my brother -in-law will throw me out of the house after one of her awesome ;) shopping spree's there ... yes, I created the shopping Godzilla in her ... :)) or should I say she is one hell of a bargain hunting Godzilla ... :)) ... and one that I use just too often to my advantage ... ;) ... giggle-giggle ...

 

 ... but this time around, I made a trip because I was hunting for some interesting accents for a project ... nothing worked out for the project ... but I am making some space at home  ... for ... ahmm ! some cute finds ... ;)

fell in love with these wooden balls ... and there were a whole lot of them ...plain ones to ones with carvings ... ah! the possibilities ...

 

... wood lanterns ... not particularly liked them ... but they can make an interesting accent piece/s ...

 ... finials ... balls ... shelves ... candle stands ... wow ... ah ... I love ... I love ...

 ... for a person like me ... who love loves creating layers with textures ... some of the weather beaten pieces are gorgeous ... and I am pretty sure many of you are going ... oh! I looove that and that ... and what I'd do if I had that ... :)) ... I know ... there is a very special feel when you head out to these kind of places. Hope you enjoyed a virtual trip with me ... have a few more pic.'s from other markets I have been hunting around in ... yes! in  this blistering heat of North india ... and ofcourse many times ... my lil' babe in tow ... oh! the perils of being the daughter of a designer mom ... :))

P.S - its not my daughter who complains  ... :( ... that is me ... already I have lost the coffee table top décor to her ... :(( its her domain now ... at this rate I'll need a second home soon ...  yes, for those of you laughing at me ... its not funny ... ;)

A simple home solution ... messy garden hose finds a home ... :)

...I feel in love with this cast iron tag at the most unlikely of places to find it ... :):) ... at a road side market ... that sells many such things for a steal . Basically what they are, is just discarded / rejected / or just last season samples and seconds. And yep! mostly meant for  the export market...

 ... o.k so I loved what I saw ... loved the finish and it looked worn out  ... love that patina too ... :):) ...

Hey! do I have a solution to a problem that has been nagging me for a while now. So the ssue is my hose pipe in the garden ... looks super ugly are strewn across ... and I have not been able to think of a neat solution to put it away ...

...ah! that pile is a neat look ... believe me it gets worse on a normal day ... ;) ...

...not anymore ... :) ... all organised and completely off the lawn ...

 ... its sure fun to find simple organising solutions around the house ...  helps keep you focused on the look you are working to create . And making sure clutter doesn't ruin all the beautifying projects ... :)

Would love to hear your thoughts about how organising works for you ...

Textile love ... across borders ...

I do have a few textile pieces, collected over the years ... and you can call them anything ...  from shabby chic to rustic and a few even bohemian ... and I often get some eyes rolling about how I 'm going to use them ... :)

I'm not a style puritan ... jee ... that must be pretty evident by now ... and I get this high when I blend in elements of different style ... and so as I am perking up my nest these days ... I am going to be working with  few of these ...

Here's a piece all Indians have loved on their Rajasthan trips and at all the handicraft stores ... its a a lot of old  pieces embroidered together ...whats amazing is that ... I spread  these pieces on my table to start working with them ... and I picked four similar looking ones ...  How Ironic ... two of them are Indian and two from Pakistan ...

... you would never guess the difference ... the work is that similar in style and workmanship and beauty ... the difference being only political ...

... I'm adding kori shells at the edges ...

... to frame or not to frame ... the project continues ... I think I'll pop in at my framers and see what kind of a job he can do for me with these ... but I know I am looking forward to these on my walls ... :)

Have you ever tried a piece that makes you say ... all no-no and your heart kind of says ... why not ... well ! it very well  may  turn out to being your ... OH! MY GOSH ... I SO LOVE THIS PIECE ... ;)

The secret gardens of Palacio de Deao ... :)

If you are visiting Palacio de deao,at Quepem ... Goa. Chances are that you are going to be mesmerised ... being personal guests of Ruben and Celia Vasco da Gama.We were expected for a lovely lunch ... an Indo Portugese ... yummmmmcious ... and prepared by Ruben and his wife Celia themselves.

Sam, Sarah and Trisha (daughter of our host at Arco Iris) ... went up the steps and rang the bell to announce themselves ... but I was kind of absentmindedly lost ... taking in all the gorgeouness of the beautiful gardens ... I later discover that these gardens on the bank of river Kushavati,have been historically known for there beauty and  Indo Portugese style ... I believe some of the features I saw are all historically dated ...

The gardens aren't really called secret gardens ... but as you walk around this beautiful property ... you move from a little secretly enclosed landscape ... onto another. Beautiful old gates and walls ... holding behind them something more for the heart to do a flip -flop over ... another coutyard ... another secret garden.

These overgrown green and varigated ginger plants ... against the balcony  ... its that feeling you get ... that throws you back on the grass and you want to just stop and let time stand still ... (until ofcourse your kids call out ... mommmmmmyyy .. aaah ... shes lost again ... come on daddy)

The entrance to Palacio de deao ... the Goan bench ... the ferns ... the fragrance of Madhumalti flowers(Rangoon creeper) fills the air ... the moment of irony in life ... should I go in and explore the beautiful antique filled home, I have heard so much about ... and the rumbling tummy says .. lunch ...lunch ... on the gorgeous back veranda .... and the heart says ... turn around ... you missed the little path that leads to the other side of the garden that holds many secrets ... the mind says .... lady you are a gonner ... ;)

... so here is exactly what I did ... agreed with my mind ( a sucker for all things that grow on the ground ) ...I turn around and follow my heart ... running down the little path,through the white pillared gate ... told my tummy ... hold it sweetheart ... theres food for the wild imagination here ... ;)

Through the gates ... past the mermaid pond... Ah .... that (in the left picture) is the back veranda ... all overgrown with bouganvillia ... the coconut palms like natures own fans ... and nearby flows ...  river Kushavati ...

I was just having a bit of a fairy tail moment here ... :) ... Everytime I see such beauty ,such lovely plants... the devil in me feels like stealing it and running away somewhere (giggle-giggle)... I don't know, does it happen to you too ... well to hide away a garden like this I'd need a big place ... really big ... ;)

As I walk around  ... I see these steps ... I can't help but wonder if they too have been around the 213 years that this mansion has  seen ... its very humbling to see the laterite stone wall that holds this raised part of the garden ... they look beautiful with all that aging ... a beauty that no designer can arificially recreate ...

The haliconias in full bloom ... bordered by low trimmed hedges ... the yellow mansion ... the green of the lawn ... oh! those antique seating ... pardon me, I completely forget what I was going to write ... :)

The gardens and the garden ornaments ... accessories ... a lot of styling here and there ... all subtly speak of the cross cultural influence ... nothing loud ... nothing that needs to prove its existence...but I guess after more than two centuries ...nothing needs to ... this garden stands in a league of its own.

If you'd like to see and know more about Palacio de Deao ... definetly book a luncheon with them ... or tea. And in the mean while you can check out their web site as well ... http://www.palaciododeao.com/
Hope you enjoyed ... drop me a line ... would love to have you share your thoughts with me ... :)

Art Conservation in India ...Meet Madhavi and Venkat Singh ... of Dharohar Art Conservation

If you are an Art Collector ... or a Connoisseur of Art ... well! than I am pretty sure you are going to be absolutely delighted to meet Madhavi and Venkat Singh of Dharohar Art Conservation ... today in India , they are the most experienced private art conservators ... who treat every type of artifacts ... and have an experience of more than fifteen years doing restoration of art works ... their repertoire of conservation reads out some of the finest art collections ... I can go on and on ranting off about their work ...
o.k, so to continue the ranting ... ;) ... here's a piece I am absolutely in love with ....

' Lakshmi ' by M Dhurandher (1924) ... this is the picture ... while the painting was still under treatment to restore it to its original beauty ... the restored part (right) ... unrestored (left)

... a fabulous restoration done at Dharohar ...of an oil painting ...'Darbar of Maler Kotla' ( a 9' x 20' ... single canvas ) by Bourne and Shepherd - 1906 ... owned by a Five Star Hotel in Delhi ...

Meet Madhavi and Venkat Singh.She is the Managing Director and he ... the Director of Dharohar Art Conservation (P) Ltd. , and between them they are a team ... hard at work in the field of art conservation in India today.Their years of experience and skills ensures they can undertake projects ranging from oil painting, lithographs ... to old Haveli's ... involving stonework (read about it below).

With the present art scenario in India so hot and happening... where interest in buying art is seen as an Investment opportunity (just like in the West) ... having an organisation such as Dharohar is a boon.They are researching techniques to authenticate art through ... Art Conservation Assessment Studies ... in other words ... studying the ways in which that particular art piece was restored or treated ... to asses the authenticity of the art work ... this is definitely a big step in India where so far art work authentication relies heavily on inputs by art historians.After 16 yrs. of research they are today in a position to provide the scientific study for water colors.

Madhavi and Venkat are based out of Lucknow.Not just the hotspot for Connoisseurs of Art in India at one time ... but still the place that is the hub for art conservation efforts... with both governmental and NGO setups existing here.

Let me share with you some more pieces of work done by Dharohar, not to miss out the heritage oil paintings (restored at Dharohar), hanging in the background on the wall of their lab(top)... and the details of when that painting was under restoration (lower) ...

Another piece I really liked was this severally damaged oil painting ... restored to its original glory.

... and these very typical English fox hunt scene ... a paper etching ... which had water marks on it ... restored beautifully.

... this here is a Tempera painting by Jamini Roy, which was completely painted over with oil paints in an earlier attempt at restoration ... ( for those of you wondering who is Jamini Roy ... well ... he is considered one of the old India Masters ... and definitely one of the most significant and influential painters of 20th century India) ... Guess, the before and after pictures speak for themselves ... about the this restoration effort ...

...a beautiful Tankha painting ... before and after the restoration work ...

... a black and white photograph .... before and after ... (being a big b/w vintage photography buff ... I have so fallen in love with what Madhavi and Venkat did here) ...

Talking about their varied body of restoration work ... let me tell you about the Haveli 's restored by them ... the above picture is part of 16 such Haveli's (what's a Haveli ... in India and Pakistan Haveli refers to a private mansion from a bygone era ... definitely speaking of decadence and splendor) that were restored for a Mumbai based Industrialist. These Haveli's have existed for about 100-200 yrs. and over time the tropical climate ... salt and moisture from the sea winds caused erosion on the stone work ... along with growth of moss , algae and lichens ...

.... this is the before picture of the stone work .... the restoration efforts for this project needed them to clean the surfaces ... extract the salt that had gotten deposited ... consolidating (filling up ) the cracks ... and finally biocide treatment and a preservative coating to the surface , to check the weathering effects ...

... oh! dear ... look at the finished result ... Madhavi, I have to say this ... a sucker for all things heritage and an emotional junkie that I am ... I would be in tears if I had ever been there ... looking at your achievement ... :) ...

Going beyond just paintings ... etchings and architectural projects ... Dharohar also handles ceramics ... above is one such vintage ceramic plate ...

... another example of ceramic restoration ... a traditional Chinese horse ...

Madhavi and Venkat have also been instrumental in conservation of art work from the Varanasi Museum ... Jnana-Pravaha ... this here is one of the cloth paintings from that collection ...

There is so much more about ... Dharohar ... and what they do that I will need to do another post ... and you can count on that ... stay tuned ... for when I share with you their art authentication techniques ...

In the mean while you can read more about them on their web site ... http://dharohar.50webs.com/ and in case you have any questions ... just leave me a comment and Madhavi can help you out ... or you can directly mail them at ... www.dharohar@sify.com , www.dharohar@gmail.com ... I sure look forward to hearing all about your experience in discovering what you never knew about the world of restoring , our priceless treasures ... hope you enjoyed reading about it ... as I did , getting to know Madhavi and the amazing work she does ... :)